Trump Nominates OSHA Lawyer to Fill Vacant NLRB Seat

On June 20, President Trump nominated Marvin Kaplan to fill one of two vacant seats on the five member National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Kaplan serves as counsel to the commissioner of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, an independent organization designed to decide workplace safety and health disputes between the Department of Labor and employers.

According to a White House statement, Kaplan will serve for the remainder of a five-year term expiring August 27, 2020.

Additionally, the statement announced Trump’s nomination of several other key appointments throughout various departments, including Patrick Pizzella to be Deputy Secretary of Labor and Michael Platt, Jr., to be the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs.

In April, the U.S. Senate confirmed Trump’s nominee for NLRB Chairman, Philip Miscimarra. However, President Obama’s NLRB appointees, Lauren McFerran and Mark Pearce , control the NLRB’s majority and agenda until the U.S. Senate confirms these nominees.

ABC, along with the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, submitted a letter to the Trump administration in June, asking for President Trump to nominate candidates and fill the two vacant seats on the NLRB.